


Hello, Natalia

by Black_Widow007



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bucky Barnes Has Issues, F/M, Natasha Feels, Saddness everywhere
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-20
Updated: 2017-11-14
Packaged: 2019-01-20 10:27:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 11,662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12430860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Black_Widow007/pseuds/Black_Widow007
Summary: Set after "Captain America: Civil War." When a mission goes wrong, Natasha gets sent back to the Red Room as the others team up with Tony to find her. Her changes to the past may end in the demise of others.





	1. The Curious Case of Natasha's Stetson

**Author's Note:**

> Both the title and the chapter titles are not set in stone. Constructive criticism is always welcome but please please please be nice about it. Any tips you can give to help my writing would be very helpful. I hope you like this story!!
> 
> Also, as I add chapters I may go back to change things in previous chapters.

Steve stared at the chamber that housed Bucky. He remembered the good times he used to have with him when they were boys, he laughed to himself of the trouble the two got into. He began to grow restless, wanting the scientists to figure out how to help Bucky already. “It has been 3 weeks since he went under, have you found anything yet?” he addressed a scientist. 

“We are onto something but we cannot guarantee anything. Scientific breakthroughs take longer than a few weeks, Mr. Rogers.” the scientist replied in a tired voice. 

Hearing his phone ring in his bag outside the room, Steve stormed out and snatched his phone. At first he didn’t recognize the number, but after two more rings he realized it was Natasha. “Hello,” he picked up the phone. 

“I was wondering if you knew how to answer your phone,” she laughed.

“How’ve you been?” Steve asked, silently hoping she had a mission for him. He needed to get his mind off Bucky.

“I’ve been...fine.”

“You know I don’t believe that.” he said.

“I’m on edge. I feel like Ross’ goons are gonna barge in at any moment. And if they don‘t find me, Tony will.” she worried.

“Right…you know you didn‘t have to help us back at the airport. I knew which side you were on.“

“I trusted you and you never let me down. I had a debt to pay.” she mentioned. “Anyway, I have something. I diverted a call to the compound. It’s a mission. A revolutionary group, the Messame Dassy. They supposedly set up shop in a motel in Georgia-not the state, the country. Not worth it if you ask me, but they might be looking for something. Sending you the coordinates by text.” she informed him.

“Okay. Thanks for this, really...thanks.”

“I’ll leave you to it then.”

But as she was about to end the call, Steve said, “wait. I want you to come with us. I miss you. And if we’re both criminals, let’s just be criminals on the run together.”

“Yeah? I don’t exactly have a way of getting over there, genius,” she snarked.

“In case you haven’t noticed, we have the Quinjet. Tell us where to meet up with you and we will.” Steve was excited to see her again.

She sighed, “alright, fine. I’ll send you the coordinates of where to pick me up. Be there tomorrow,” and she ended the call.

Steve ran to Sam’s room. He rapped on the open door, saying, “suit up. We’re going to pick someone up,” and he ran off.

“A mission. Like a real mission. Score!” Sam celebrated.

Sam and Steve piloted the Quinjet for hours before reaching Natasha’s coordinates. “Arizona. Not a bad hiding spot, but I’d choose something a bit more luxurious.” Sam chuckled, but Steve did not show any sign that he was listening.

They landed the Quinjet on a wide expanse of land near a small cabin. As they got out, they noticed Natasha standing near the structure. Steve jogged swiftly towards her, signaling Sam to stay put. “Hey there, stranger,” Natasha said, tipping the edge of her stetson.

“I like the new style. This your place,” Steve pointed to the cabin behind her.

“Yeah. I wanted to be isolated. I don’t think you can be any more isolated. The nearest town is 30 miles away,” she explained.

“You haven’t seen our safehouse.” he boasted.

“I’d like to.” she asked.

“We have to stop to pick up Wanda, so we’ll get you situated somewhere.”

“I have to grab my bag. Come in.” she invited him into her lodging.

He walked through the unusually short door and noticed a relatively empty space with the exception of a few empty wine glasses. He took note of this, not wanting to spoil the happy moment.

She walked into a small closet and Steve heard banging. After a minute or two, she emerged from the closet holding her avenger suit which was covered in a thin layer of dust. She wiped the dust off and stuffed the suit into her bag. “Let’s go,” she said.

When they were all in the Quinjet, Steve helped Sam get the plane in the air before he handed all controls to Sam. Natasha opened her weapons locker and questioned, “why is there a gun missing?”

“Oh, yeah sorry about that. Bucky needed it to kill the other winter soldiers, but they were all dead when we got there.” Steve explained.

Natasha crouched in a corner and Steve crouched beside her, knowing something was wrong. “What’s wrong, Nat?” he asked.

“Nothing. I am perfect...more than perfect.”

“I know you’re not. Tell me what’s going on.” Steve saw right through her lies. This was the agent he worked with on many missions already, he knew that she could only go so far before breaking. He knew the civil war hurt her, both physically and emotionally.

“I have been having nightmares for a long time. Ever since we got Loki in that cage. I went to talk to him to say what his next move was. He brought up my past, said Clint told him everything. He said Clint would have me killed, which of course he didn’t. But it brought back the trust issues and feelings I felt when I first met him. I continued with the mission, but I couldn’t get it out of my head...I still can’t.”

“You never told me that.” Steve said.

“I didn’t think it was important. I did my job, I did it right, I did it well. So it was no concern of you or anyone else.”

The rest of the trip was silent. Natasha thought it a bad time to bring up her flashbacks, which she had been having as a result of Tony. She didn’t want Steve going over to him and making things worse. The flashbacks were sometimes memories of good things, though. It was not as if she were remembering only bad things in her life, but rather she was reliving it in a random order and at random points in time that she couldn‘t control - like Billy Pilgrim.

When they reached Wakanda, Steve reached out to help the agent up but she didn’t seem to notice him. She was staring off into nothing but in her eyes, she was running away from the Hulk on the carrier. Before she knew it, she had been swiped off her feet and hit into the wall. The hulk then raised his hand but before he could hit her, Thor smashed him into the next room. After a moment, she flashed back into reality. To her left she saw Steve, squatting beside her and speaking in a gentle tone. To her right, she noticed Sam, standing and crossing his arms in a confused manner. When she turned back to Steve, she noticed his eyes were watery and he was at the brink of crying. “I thought I lost you there for a moment. I thought you were totally gorked.” he laughed slightly. He didn’t want to be selfish but deep down he just didn’t want to lose anybody else.

“I’m fine. I just...zoned out.” she brushed off the event.

“Cap may be stupid, but I’m not. I know what a flashback looks like.” Sam paused as she looked down, “what did you see?”

“Bruce...n-no, the Hulk. When we first recruited him for the mission with Loki. The time he got angry on the carrier.” she said.

“You didn’t mention you were having flashbacks,” Steve said.

“I knew what you’d say.”

“And what is that?” Steve asked.

“You would try to go kill the man who started them,” she told.

“Who? Loki?”

"No." She debated whether or not to tell him. She thought back to the trust he gave her, she knew she couldn’t hold a secret from him. “Tony.”

“What did that bastard do?!” Steve shouted.

“He said something to me.” she claimed.

“What?” Steve yelled, wanting a straight answer.

“Quiet, I’m telling you. He said, ‘it must be hard to shake, the whole double agent thing. It sticks in the DNA.’ It wasn’t the worst thing anyone has ever said or even done to me. But it pushed me over the edge of the cliff I had been hanging from for a while. I guess it was just the fact that it was him. I expected something of the sort from Loki, but I trusted Tony - at least as far as I could throw him.”

Steve was silent, he understood that words hurt her more than actions. She could hold her own in a fight, but confrontations were much harder to withstand. He wanted to kill Tony, though. Natasha was his friend in a business where there are very few friends. He stood and reached for her hand to help her up. The three walked together towards the base. T’Challa sauntered out to greet them. “I thought I’d never see you again. I thought Ross surely captured you by now, then again you are the black widow.”

“I fled the compound. Tony told me that you told Ross. I am sorry, by the way, for what I did to you.” she shooed Sam and Steve and said to T’Challa, “I owed Steve and me and James...we go way back.”

“Repaying a debt is a noble cause. What did he do that made you betray us?”

“He saved my life, and protected me from Hydra.”

“That is a big deal. Where did you first meet Mr. Barnes?”

“We are not close enough for me to tell you that. Besides, you seem to have changed sides.”

“Yes I did. I sided with Tony because I was fueled by vengeance for my father. I was wrong. But you betrayed the people who trusted you in that moment to stop Steve. You made a conscious decision and I don’t think you will recover from the consequences. I have business to attend to.” he walked away.


	2. A Small Motel in Georgia

Natasha went into the base, trying to find where Steve wandered off to. She walked into a room and noticed a large, human-sized container in the middle. Approaching the front of the chamber, she began feeling cold. When she reached the front, she was hesitant to look at it, knowing what (or who) it could have housed. Looking up, she was saddened to see James frozen. She shuffled out of the room, not wanting to be in Wakanda any longer. As she was leaving, an image of James flashed in her mind. He was in the Red Room instructing her during her time in the Black Widow program. His metal arm was much less advanced and he looked only a year or so younger than he does currently. She stopped moving, shut her eyes tight and waited for the image to pass.

When her eyes opened, Steve was standing just down the hall, staring at her in concern. She stomped over to him and said, “are we ready to go?”

“I have a surprise for you first.” he mentioned.

“What!” she became angry, thinking that Steve was just using Bucky and putting him on ice when they didn’t need him, like they did in Russia.

Steve pointed to the door next to her. When she turned to see what was there, Clint was leaning against the frame of the door. “Hey, Nat. I like your hat.” she realized she was still wearing her Stetson.

“Hi, did Steve tell you about the mission?” she said casually.

“A hug would be nice. The last time I saw you, we were trying to kill each other.” He stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her.

“Are you coming out of retirement?” she asked.

“Well just until this is over. For now I got the family here.” 

Clint’s kids ran from the room shouting, “aunt Natasha!” They hugged her while Clint was still holding her.

She pulled away, “okay, that’s enough. Go back to your mother.” When the kids were back in the room she asked Clint, “how is Laura taking this whole thing?”

“I’m not gonna lie, she hates you a little bit because you were on Tony’s side.” he explained.

“Clearly I’m not anymore so she doesn’t have to worry about that. I broke the trust of a lot of people in trying to help you guys.” She turned back to Steve and repeated, “are we ready to go?”

“Yeah. Everyone is waiting in the Quinjet, save for you, me and Clint,” Steve replied and the three headed out, but not before Clint kissed his wife goodbye. 

The team sat in the Quinjet, completely silent. Wanda was pacing back and forth. Eventually the sound of footsteps began to bother Clint and he stood from the pilot seat and walked over to Wanda. “Calm down,” he said. “You’re gonna do fine, kid. This is a remote hotel in the middle of nowhere, a perfect practice spot for you.”

“I don’t think I’m ready. What if you guys count on me for something and I can’t deliver?”

“You can and will deliver because I’ll be there pushing you the whole time,” he assured her. She nodded and sat down on a bench connected to the wall. “Thank you,” he said as he went back to piloting the jet.

Steve sat on the floor, feeling naked without his shield. What did it matter that the shield was made by Tony’s dad, it was given to him. But now, he had no shield, yet he knew he could complete the mission without it.

Natasha was curled in a ball in the same corner she was in when she was leaving Arizona. She tried to clear her mind as she needed to be sharp for the assignment. 

The Quinjet was nearing Georgia so Steve stood to tell everyone the plan, “I’m thinking we can go straight in and threaten them. Wanda can give us a read on where everyone is.”

“No. We should go in quietly. I’ll drive up and book a room. Hopefully they will just go with it and give me a key. Then they’ll probably come in and threaten me and I’ll take them out with your help,” Natasha said.

“I agree with Natasha,” Wanda said.

“Me too,” said Clint.

“Okay then. Get us maybe one mile out and drop my motorcycle,” she ordered. Natasha quickly changed into a casual outfit and grabbed a pistol from her weapons locker. They neared the spy’s drop point.

Clint said, “drop in 3...2...1” and the bottom hatch of the Quinjet opened, releasing Black Widow on her motorcycle. She drove off towards the target location, her brown jacket flapping in the wind.

When she arrived to the front desk, she saw a tall, dark haired man behind the desk. Seeing her, the man said in Russian, “Hello, welcome. Room for one?” 

“Yes,” she replied, “thank you.” He handed her a key and she walked to her room. She couldn’t shake the feeling that they were watching her, though. When she got into the room, she closed the door and, via her earpiece, said to the team, “I’m in the room. I give it ten minutes before they come find me. Are you in position?”

“ETA two minutes,” Captain America replied.

“Make it One.” she readied the charged discs that were attached to her bracelets. 

“Copy that.”

“I’m in position,” Hawkeye said. He was situated about 500 feet from the motel, hidden behind a bush with his bow at the ready.

“I am too. I got the roof covered,” Falcon stated.

“Wanda and I are ready.” Captain America informed.

Just as Captain America ended his sentence, Black Widow heard people rapidly approaching. “They’re here,” she noted. She leaned against the wall next to the door, ready for them to barge in. The lock clicked, and the doorknob turned ever so slowly. The men opened the door carefully, trying not to alert the person inside. A few of them walked through the door as she hid behind it, keeping her composure. As the last person walked in, she slipped out from behind the door and strangled the man. The others noticed but as they turned around, Black Widow kicked at one of their faces and threw a charged disc at the other. “Clint, go,” she ordered.

Hawkeye aimed his bow directly at one of the guys. "I got him," he stated confidently. He pulled the string back, but as he let go, he felt very bad about the shot. Suddenly, Scarlet Witch, knowing what had happened, ran for the assassin. Captain America, instead, ran for the back of the motel, wanting to break through the window of the room. When Scarlet Witch got to the room, she notice an arrow sticking out of Black Widow’s gut.

The world around Black Widow faded away and a new world seemed to engulf her. She was approaching Hawkeye from behind. Suddenly he realized she was there and he attacked her, shooting arrows at her from close-range. She dodged his arrows and maneuvered between the pipes of the lower levels of the S.H.I.E.L.D helicarrier. Hawkeye pulled out his knife but she grabbed and twisted his arm. When he freed himself, he went to stab her in the throat, but she held his wrists. His left hand slipped out of her hold and he tugged on her hair. In response, she bit his arm and swung him right into a metal yellow bar, knocking him to the ground. She stared at him, not wanting to hurt her partner. He mumbled, “Tasha,” as he snapped out of Loki’s mind control. She knew, however, that she had to finish him off so she punched him square in the face, and he was knocked unconscious.

As Black Widow was having the flashback, Scarlet Witch noticed that one of the men were holding a knife. He raised his arm up, ready to stab Black Widow in the neck as she laid on her back, unmoving. Scarlet Witch’s fingers abruptly began to glow red and soon after, Black Widow was enveloped in red magic and in the blink of an eye, Black Widow was gone. Captain America appeared in the room a moment after as the man’s knife lay lodged in the floor. Captain America kicked the remaining two men away. Scarlet Witch lifted them up into the air and Falcon spread his wings and flew over to them, grabbing them and saying, “Bye, fellas,” as he threw them through the air to their demise.

Hawkeye ran over to the others. Yelling, “Where is she? Where is Tasha?!”

“I don’t know,” Captain America said worriedly.

“I teleported her. She was about to be killed. She wasn’t getting up, I needed to do something. But, I can’t find her life signal anywhere nearby,” Scarlet Witch explained.

“She wasn’t getting up…” Captain America repeated, remembering back to the flashback she had earlier that day.

“I hit her...with an arrow. I...missed my target. I never miss,” Hawkeye hit himself in the forehead, knowing that this was probably all his fault.

“It’s not your fault, Clint. It’s Tony’s fault,” Captain America told.

“How do you mean?” Hawkeye wondered how Tony could have been involved at all.

“I’ll explain, but we have to get back to the safe house. Now!” they ran back to the Quinjet swiftly. 

When they boarded the jet, Wanda said, “I did it again didn’t I?”

“What?” Clint asked.

“I ruined everything with my powers, again.” 

“No. When I picked up Natasha from her hideout in Arizona, I noticed she was having flashbacks and she told me she had been having nightmares every night since that asshole Stark brought up her past to her. We have to find Natasha.” Steve said.

“Depending on where she is, that might have to involve Tony’s expertise,” Sam said.

A long way away, Natasha opened her eyes to see a large, empty room. She heard high heels coming closer and closer. She attempted to sit up, but found that an enormous amount of blood was spilling out of the wound in her stomach...an arrow had pierced her abdomen . While she was thinking about her injury, the woman was standing directly in front of her, looking down in confusion. The woman crouched down and held Natasha’s face up towards the dim lights. The woman said, “Hello, Natalia.”


	3. A Relaxing Brainwashing

Natasha winced from the immense pain she was feeling. She remarked, “the name is Natasha.”

“Your name is Natalia Alianovna Romanova. I would know that face anywhere. What are you doing here?” the woman said.

“That depends. What year is it?” Natasha asked.

“You graduated 2 years ago from the black widow program,” the woman said.

At that moment, Natasha felt like she was being crushed into the floor. She wanted to curl into a ball and die from her wound, but she knew that now that Madame B was there, her life was about to change.

“Who do you work for now?” Madame B asked.

“Not you, not the KGB, not anyone.” she replied.

“Well, if you won’t tell me, I’ll just have to break you.”

“You can’t break me. I’m made of marble.” Natasha suppressed her groans of pain.

Madame B sauntered away, her high heels clicking with every step. After a few minutes, Natasha began slipping away from consciousness. She heard Madame B coming back, followed by something with squeaky wheels. Madame B crouched by her side again, seeing Natasha falling away, “hmm,” she mentioned, “we’ll have to work on pain management.”

Two men grabbed her and placed her on the gurney with squeaky wheels. They rolled her to the medical bay, which was completely empty. As the men picked her up and placed her onto a stationary bed, Natasha passed out, not being able to withstand her pain any longer.

When Natasha awoke, her vision was blurry but she could still see two figures in front of her. One was Madame B, but she couldn’t tell who the other one was. As she looked around, she noticed the arrow was no longer sticking out of her. When she tried to move her hands, she felt cold metal against her wrists - handcuffs.

She apparently drew attention to herself as both of the figures were staring at her. “As you can see,” Madame B addressed the other person, “Natalia is out of sorts. Did you forget your training?” she now addressed Natasha. “Did you forget Mr. Barnes?” James stepped closer, allowing Natasha to see it was him. 

Her heart pounded at the sight of him. “You’re right. This is Natalia,” he claimed as he walked away.

“Miss Romanova, or is it Mrs. Romanova?” Madame B asked.

“Miss.” Natasha replied, she hoped the others would somehow show up to save her or Wanda could reverse the teleportation.

“Of course. I should have known. You’re a monster, Natalia. You’re my monster. No man would ever love you.”

This stung Natasha, but she held onto the fact that it wasn’t true. Clint loved her...but he shot her with an arrow. She wasn’t sure what to believe. She had no reply for Madame B.

“As I was saying, miss Romanova, we are going to start your retraining today. You’re not dead yet so we can use an agent like you…at least until you graduate in a few years.”

Natasha’s eyes watered. She worked hard to get away from the Red Room and the KGB the first time, a second time might prove impossible.

“You are weak!” Madame B was angry, “everything we trained you for put to waste. Who did you work for?! Who made you less?”

“Go to hell.”

“Honey, I am hell,” she snapped her fingers and two men walked in and transferred Natasha to another gurney, strapping her arms and legs down. They took her to a small metal room, closed off by a large vault door. The men sat her in a steel chair and locked her wrists down onto the arms of the chair and they locked her ankles to the legs of the chair. She struggled against the restraints, but stopped when the pain in her stomach overcame her. The men pressed a button and two metal clamps latched onto her head. “You can either tell us who you work for, or we will hurt you.”

“Either way you’re going to brainwash me into working for you, so let’s get this over with.”

Madame B grimaced, “do it, boys.”

One of the men flipped a switch, sending electricity through the clamps and into her head. She screamed and screamed until the volts subsided. Madame B started saying a list of trigger words to complete the brainwashing, “fire...quiet...spider…”

Natasha interrupted , “No, stop! Please!” but Madame B had no intention of stopping now.

She continued, “spy...darkness…red.”

And Natasha’s head dropped. When she looked up, Madame B said, "Hello, Natalia."

She replied, “waiting for orders.”

Madame B laughed, seeing how easy it was to play with the spy's mind. She then asked, “Who do you work for?”

“The KGB,” Natasha mindlessly said. In her head she knew the truth but she couldn’t control what she said or did.

“Who did you work for?”

“I started my training in the Red Room which led me to work for the KGB. I then worked for S.H.I.E.L.D and hydra, who were disguised as S.H.I.E.L.D.”

“S.H.I.E.L.D? How did you end up in that pig sty?”

“S.H.I.E.L.D sent agent Barton to kill me. He took me to them and recruited me rather than killing me.” Natasha explained.

“And you let him take you? We will have to make sure it does not happen again.”

Natasha remained silent. “Someone get me a healing element and gauze!” Madame B yelled and the men ran out of the cold, dark room. When they returned, Madame B lifted Natasha’s shirt and undid the old wraps. She spread the healing element over the injury which she then wrapped with new gauze. “There. Get her out of this chair!”

The men set Natasha’s wrists and ankles free. She stood and stretched, stiff from the lack of movement. “Follow,” Madame B commanded. Natasha walked behind Madame B. They arrived in the same large room she first appeared in. “A test, if you will. Don’t worry, it’s not graded,” Madame B laughed.

Natasha stood in the center as James strolled into the room. “Fight him,” Madame B instructed. 

Natasha raised her fists, ready for a tough battle. He charged at her, fire in his eyes. She kicked him in the throat, knocking him back. He went to punch her but she blocked the hit, responding by jumping and grabbing his neck with her thighs She hit his head as she sat on his shoulders. He grabbed her and threw her to the ground. She jumped back up, steadying herself from the blow. James grabbed her throat with his metal arm and lifted her off the ground. She punched and kicked, trying to make him let go. He smashed her against the far wall repeatedly. Eventually, she tapped his arm, a signal to let her go. She sank to the floor, gasping for air.

“You can do better. Try again.” Madame B said.

Natasha rose from her knees, ready to fight again. James approached her and she swiped his legs with her leg, dropping him to the floor. She ran and kicked him in the face. He rose to his feet and cracked his neck. Natasha grabbed James’ metal arm and bashed it into his chest a few times. She then flipped him over her shoulder and punched him one more time, rendering him unconscious.

“Messy, but you beat him. I have to give you that.” Madame B clapped lightly. “Let me show you your room.” Natasha and Madame B walked to a small room - more of a jail cell than anything - containing a twin sized bed with handcuffs at the sides. Natasha laid down and Madame B handcuffed her to the bed, “Sweet dreams, Natalia.”


	4. Damsel in Distress

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is kinda short so I might add to it but I dunno.

The Quinjet landed at the Avengers compound. Tony Stark was standing outside, ready to greet them. “Hello, criminals.”

“Do you really want to get into this right now?”Steve was desperate to find Natasha, for all he knew, she could be dead.

“You never told me what you needed me for,” Tony mentioned, curious as to why the criminals came crawling to him for help.

“It’s Tasha...she’s MIA,” Clint told.

“So you need my help to find her?” Tony scoffed.

The others nodded, not wanting to accept the fact that they actually needed him.

“Well, that’s too bad. If you had mentioned it was the double agent who was the damsel in distress, then I would have saved you the trip. I’m not helping her after how she betrayed me!” Tony was still furious about the incident at the airport.

“She could be dead!” Steve yelled.

“Then I don’t need to help her do I? Go home,” Tony walked away.

The team ran after him, desperate for help. Steve grabbed Tony’s shoulder and turned him around, “please, Tony. I wouldn’t be asking if I didn’t need this from you.”

Tony considered for a moment, trying to think a few moves ahead. If he did this, what would he get out of it? Would he get in trouble? After thinking deeply of the possible outcomes and consequences, Tony finally agreed, “fine. I’ll help.” and he headed towards the base.

Inside the base, Tony led the others to his lab. “Natasha is a deceptive character. Are you sure she didn’t just leave you because she was tired of you guys?”

“No.” Steve explained the whole incident to Tony.

“I see. Do we have any clues of where Wanda may have sent her?” Tony asked.

“I can try to search for her but it could take months, maybe even years.” Wanda said.

“Not if we have a device that can tap into your consciousness. It could speed the process up, but it might still take a while,” Tony informed. “In the meantime, write down all the memories you have of Natasha. Every day, check the original list to see if you have any additional memories of her.”

“Because she may be altering history.” Wanda concluded.

“That and it could help us know when to search for her.” Tony said.

Rhodes passed by the lab, still hobbling due to his condition. Sam made eye contact with him, feeling sorry for what had happened. He broke his gaze, looking back towards Tony.

The next day, Tony called the others into his lab. He sat on one of the counters, looking at a small device in his hands, as they came in. He showed it to them. He said, “Here it is.”

“How does it work,” Clint asked, worried for how Wanda might be affected.

“Well, we connect this to Wanda’s head, it may sting as there is a tiny needle that inserts itself through her skull. Then we connect a standard HDMI cord to it and then connect that to this,” he pointed to the supercomputer behind him. “It should speed up the search by 20 times.”

Clint put his arm around Wanda. He cared for her, but right now he cared more for his partner, Natasha. “Are you good with this,” he asked her.

“Yeah. Anything to reverse my mistakes,” she replied, not taking her eyes of the machine.

“Wanda, you know that doing this will put you in a coma until you find her, right?” Steve asked.

“I know. So let’s start while we can.” 

Tony had Wanda lay on a small bed surrounded by medical machines to track her vitals during the coma. He held the device up to her head and a small spike came out, stabbing into her brain. She grunted but the pain was short-lived. He attached the device to the supercomputer.

Clint said to Wanda, “whenever you’re ready,”

Wanda began to search for life signs of Natasha on a worldwide scale through all of time. She fell into a coma as the computer showed where and when she was looking. While Clint stared at Wanda, Steve sat and wrote all his memories of Natasha, from the time they met up on the carrier to their kiss in that mall, to the most recent fight they fought and everything in between.

“Clint,” Steve addressed him, “she’ll be okay. Right now we have to worry about Nat.”

Clint turned away from Wanda and scribbled down his memories of the spy: the time he was sent to kill her, Budapest, their fight on the carrier, Sokovia, Georgia, among others. Sam also noted his limited memories involving Natasha. 

Tony watched a monitor next to the supercomputer where all of the names showed up. He expected to see Natasha’s name a few times but only when she was younger so he would just have to cross reference the names with the images. “What did I get myself into?” he mumbled to himself.


	5. More Red in the Ledger

Natasha laid in the bed, reflecting on how she ended up back in the Red Room. Her thoughts gradually went from optimistic to pessimistic as the brainwashed part of her slowly took full control over her. She then found herself unable to disobey in the slightest, and she closed her eyes.

Suddenly she woke up to the sound of the door to her cell opening. She saw James walking in, watching his back to make sure no one was following him. “Hello,” he said.

“Hello.”

Bucky is not brainwashed any more after the fight with natasha. He comes in and asks her how she got there and if she can leave. He then claims he is in love with her and kisses her, she looks confused and convinces him to take off her handcuffs. She beats him up and takes him to be “recalibrated”

“How did you get here? How did you travel in time?” he asked.

“There is a girl, in the future, who teleported me when I was...compromised. I ended up here.”

“You have to have a way back, right? Tell her to take you back. You don’t want to be here,” he was frantic, yet he was trying to keep his voice down as he knows that the walls have ears.

Realizing that his brainwashing wore off, Natasha decided to act as though she too was no longer under the control of the Red Room, “Can you help me get out?” she looked at the restraints that bound her to the bed.

He ripped the handcuffs off her wrists and threw them to the ground. She sat up, rubbing the marks that the restraints left on her. They looked into each other’s eyes and he felt compelled to kiss her. Her features looked so gentle and welcoming to him that he leaned closer to her and left a kiss on her pink lips. Natasha stared at him, wondering if he would say more. Finally he said, “I think I’m in love with you.”

“Love?” she paused. “Love is for children.” It was then that he realized she was still brainwashed.

“Natalia, listen to me. This is not you, you are bett-” he attempted to convince her that she was under the control of someone else, someone evil, but she punched him in the face. He looked at her in sadness. She followed through, punch after punch. He didn’t want to hurt her as he knew that she was the plaything of the soviets and she was not thinking for herself. “I’m sorry you are here,” he mumbled as she punched him one last time, knocking him out.

She dragged him to the brainwashing chamber, where a man with a red beret stood. He turned and shouted, “what are you doing in here?!”

“He came into my room talking about love. He needs to be recalibrated.” Natasha now thought of brainwashing not as bad thing, but as a push that put your mindset back into the right place. 

The man stared at the unconscious James. He said, “Okay.” 

She left the room and headed back to her quarters for the night. In the morning, Madame B went to retrieve Natasha from her cell. “Wake up, Natalia.”

Natasha opened her eyes and sat up. She was disoriented and trying to recall where she was. Suddenly she realized where she was and she stood and attacked Madame B, who retaliated by dodging every punch and every kick. Madame B grabbed Natasha by her arms and called the men into the room. “You really think you can best me, Natalia?”

As the men came towards her, she tripped them both and slipped her arms out of Madame B’s grip. She kicked Madame B in the gut, sending her to the other side of the room. Madame B called for reinforcements as she said, “you’ve learned a few things since your training here.”

“Yes I did. I’m better than you could have ever imagined.” Four men arrived to restrain Natasha, but she fought them. Jumping onto their shoulders and swinging around them to knock them all to the floor, like dominoes. 

Madame B went up to her and cuffed her as she was busy with the others. She said, “I think it’s time for another brainwashing. You become so helpful when you are obedient. Turning the asset in after he became disloyal to our cause,” Natasha remembered how she hurt Bucky the other night, she wanted to scream out her frustration but didn’t, knowing she should save the screaming for the Brainwashing. “Can’t you see, Natalia? You are built to see the world as I do. You were created to work for Russia, not anyone else.”

“You’re wrong. I made some friends during my time at S.H.I.E.L.D, and they gave me a new perspective...a better one. She tried to resist, but the men took Natasha back to the cold, dark chamber for another brainwashing. This time they ensured it would last longer than the one the other day.

After the fact, Madame B unstrapped Natasha from the chair and said, “we have a mission for you, Natalia.”

“Ready to comply.”

“Captain America has an important...artifact and we want it. You will retrieve it. It is a secondary objective to kill him, if circumstances prevent you from doing so, just return the item to us,” Madame B ordered.

The man with the red beret went closer to Madame B. He voiced his reservations, “this girl has only been here for a day. Do you really trust her on this mission.”

“You forget, sergeant, that this is not just any girl. This is Natalia. She never fails. We recalibrated her, you saw the positive effects of that last night. She is a safer bet than the winter soldier right now anyway. He has been in cryogenic stasis for too short a time for him to be trustworthy. So, we go with the girl. If she fails, we train her more. If she succeeds, we send her to the KGB.”

Natasha was taken to a truck out front where she was escorted to a private jet that would take her to the United States. She sat in the plane, adjusting her new uniform. She had charged discs on her wrist and multiple pistol holsters: one on her thigh and another on her belt. She watched as her widow’s bite sent electricity from her knuckles as she imagined Steve dead by her hands. “Soon,” she whispered to herself.

When she arrived at the United States, she left the plane and looked around. Trying to acclimate herself to the new environment. She walked over to a motorcycle and stole it. Driving away towards Rogers’ presumed location.

Natasha thought about nothing as she sped down side roads. When she was nearing the location, she looked towards a window and noticed Rogers staring out. She stayed out of his sights and when he looked away, Natasha drove the motorcycle into another car, causing an eruption of flames to engulf the vehicles. The fire quickly spread to the building so Natasha hid, waiting for Steve to arrive.

As expected, Captain America sprinted out of the building, watching as the flames consumed the motorcycle. He looked around as Natasha stayed out of sight. He turned around and she approached him quietly. She attached a remote controlled disc onto his back. As he began to turn around, Natasha clicked a button on her bracelet and Steve fell to the ground, electricity running through his body. He stood, fighting the pain and he threw his shield at the assassin. She ducked sending the shield into a nearby van. She jumped onto his back, locking her legs around his neck. Natasha let her widow’s bite burn into his neck and she punched his face over and over and over until he threw her to the ground. She rolled onto her feet and flipped her hair back, smirking at the challenge he proved to be.

She ran towards Rogers and he grabbed her, throwing he into a wall. As she jumped up, the spy shot a charged disc at Captain America. He groaned as the volts tore through his shirt and stung him. She pulled out her pistols and aimed them directly at the soldier. She said, “give me the artifact.”

“I’m not gonna do that, ma’am,” he claimed. “You’re just gonna have to to take it off my dead body.”

She turned her head slightly, admiring his loyalty - even if it was for the wrong side. “That can be arranged,” she said as she shot him once in the chest and he fell to his knees, heaving as blood filled his mouth. “Give me the artifact!” she got impatient when she heard sirens approaching.

“No,” he whispered, not being able to project his voice.

She shot him two more times and he finally succumbed to his pain. When she walked over to him, she felt a weak pulse. The police were almost there so she left him alive, but she took the curious wooden talisman from his pocket. The assassin placed it in her pocket and ran from the scene.

When she arrived back to the Red Room, Madame B was eager to see how Natasha performed for her homecoming mission. As Natasha neared Madame B, she pulled the item out of her pocket and dropped it into Madame B’s hands.

“Mission report,” she ordered.

“Rogers is alive.”

She seemed disappointed at the news. “The KGB requested you while you were away. They need you to take down S.H.I.E.L.D”


	6. Partner in Crime

Clint was running, running through viscous air. It seemed as though he were running in slow motion. Slowly, running towards a shadow in the distance. The shadow was screaming for him, crying out for help. He got close enough to see the person underneath the shadow, Natasha. She was on the ground, an arrow sticking out of her stomach. “Tasha!” he called. He was so close to her now, still pushing through the immense air resistance that held him back. Suddenly she disappeared leaving nothing but a small pool of blood behind.

Clint woke up sweating. His shirt was completely soaked through. He sat up and grabbed his phone from the table beside him. He called Laura, saying to her, “Hey, love.”

“Hi. How are you?”

“I’m good,” he lied.

“Have you found anything yet?”

“No, nothing. Listen, I gotta go check on Wanda. Say ‘hi’ to the kids for me.” He hung up.

Steve sat in the lab, staring at his exposed chest in a mirror. There was a bullet scar right in the center. He knew how that happened, but according to the list of memories he wrote, this was new. Tony walked in, staring at his phone. “Tony,” Steve called.

As Tony looked up, he said, “no, no. This is my lab and you have to put a shirt on if you’re going to be here. I don’t want you particles all over the place.” 

Steve turned around, showing the scar to Tony. “I have a new memory of Nat,” he claimed.

Tony rushed to the computer. “Tell me when that happened.”

“2001.” 

Tony modified the search parameters to the year 2001. Suddenly, Clint walked in, going over to Wanda to check her status. Steve looked at Tony and shook his head, a signal that he would deal with Clint. “Can I talk to you outside, Clint?”

“Yeah,” he said, suspicion in his eyes.

They walked out of the room, and Steve shut the door behind him. “We figured out when Nat was sent to.”

“You did...” he noticed the scar on his chest, “...is that new?”

“Yeah. Well no, but it happened because of our Natasha...in 2001.”

“2001? What you’re saying is she’s working for Russia?”

“We think so. She attacked me in trying to find something. She was clearly brainwashed. There’s no other explanation for why she would do that.”

Clint became angry, knowing that his partner was in the one place that hurt her the most. He stormed off, leaving the compound. Steve went back to Tony, who asked, “where did he go?”

“God only knows.”

Clint paced outside, contemplating what to do next. He spotted a truck parked in a nearby lot. He ran over to it and smashed the driver seat window. He hot wired the car, and rested his hands on the steering wheel. He knew just where to go.

Driving along a small dirt road, wind blew into Clint’s face from the smashed window beside him. Finally, he pulled up in front of a small cabin. Walking inside, he addressed a man inside, “ya know nobody can see this place, right?”

“Sometimes seclusion is good,” the man said.

“Preach,” Clint mentioned, taking a seat at a counter facing various spirits and liquors.

The man walked behind the bar saying, “what’ll it be? Whiskey, scotch, beer?”

“Nah, just a soda.”

“Alright,” the man said as he grabbed a bottle from the refrigerator. “The name’s Scott.”

“Clint,” he told.

“So, Clint...what’s got ya down that you dragged yourself out here?” he handed Clint the soda.

“My partner is...in a bad way,” he said.

“And your partner...a significant other or?” Scott wondered.

“No, my partner in crime. No, I’m married to someone else,” Clint said.

“But you love your partner?”

“Not so much love as I just care about her. I saved her from a bad crowd and now she’s back with ‘em. It’s not her fault.”

“Then who’s fault is it?”

“Mine. I...hurt her,” Clint recalled.

“I doubt it’s your fault, man. This Natasha seems like she can hold her own,” Scott observed.

Clint was quiet for a moment until he mentioned, “I never said her name was Natasha.”

Scott grabbed a bottle of scotch and smashed it against the counter. He held it out at Clint, threatening him.

“Scott, you don’t have to do this,” Clint tried to reason with him.

Scott moved from behind the counter, stepping closer and closer to Clint. He charged at Clint, who dodged him and knocked him to the ground. Clint punched scott until he went limp, releasing all of his anger. “I’m sorry, Scott.”

Back at the compound, Clint’s phone lay on the end table beside his bed. It buzzed and buzzed but Clint wasn’t there to pick it up. On the caller ID, the phone said “Laura.”


	7. Guess Who's Back

Back in Wakanda, T’Challa juggled the thoughts in his head - jumping from one matter to the next and then to another and then back to the first. He began to hear a tapping sound, like footsteps, above him. He stood and walked over to the sound, standing underneath it. As he stared at the ceiling, the window of his office opened slowly and a person crawled in. When they approached him, T’Challa turned quickly to see the person. He said, “Miss Romanoff, I didn’t know they found you. I see you still like to make an entrance.”

She stared at him blankly. After a moment, she approached T’Challa. She wrapped her hand around his neck, leaning closer to him. When her lips were mere centimeters from his, she slammed his head onto the desk. He recuperated, throwing  punches at Natasha. She dodged his strikes and kicked him in the gut, sending him across the room. “Where is Barton?” she asked.

“Oh…” he wiped blood from his lip, “you just missed him.”

She shocked him, and, pulling out a small dagger from her belt, stabbed him in the heart. Not saying a word, Natasha headed out of the room. She passed two guards who eyed her suspiciously. They soon found T’Challa dead in his office and they aimed their guns at her, shouting, “Put your hands up!”

In the other room, Laura heard the commotion. Frightened, she hid the kids in the closet and grabbed her phone. She frantically dialed Clint’s number but there was no reply.

Natasha said to the guards, “Hey, boys. There’s no need for that.” She put her hands up, but as one of them came to disarm her, she used her widow’s bite. Grabbing his gun as it fell, she threatened the other man. Natasha observed sweat falling from his brow...nerves. She said, “Your gun isn’t cocked.”

As his eyes glanced down towards his gun, the spy shot at him, sending bullets into his head. She continued to search through each room, killing anyone inside if they weren’t vital to her mission. Close to the end of the hall, she found, Laura, who was holding a phone up to her ear. “Clint, call me back when you-” a shot rang out and the phone fell to the floor. She held her hand over her chest. When she looked in front of her, she saw a bullet hole in the wall - the bullet went straight through her.

Natasha picked up the phone from the ground. She saw that the call was still ongoing so she held it to her ear and said in Russian, “catch me if you can.” And the call was ended. Natasha walked towards the door as Laura fell to her knees. Suddenly, she heard a slight tap against the closet.

As Natasha closed in on the closet, Laura attempted to distract her, “Clint will find you...you know that right?”

“I’m counting on it,” Natasha smirked, grabbing Laura by the neck and throwing her at the wall. She again walked towards the closet. Swinging the door open, she saw a little boy next to a little girl who was holding a baby boy. “It’s okay,” she told them, “you’re safe now.” She grabbed them and brought them out into the open. Grabbing Laura’s phone, Natasha snapped a photo of the kids and sent it to Clint along with the text, “come meet me. You have 2 days or the children will die.”

“What’s going on, Aunt Natasha?” Lila asked, fear in her voice.

“What happened to mom?” Cooper asked.

“No worries. Your dad is on his way,” Natasha told.

When Clint arrived back at the compound, he passed by the lab, paying no attention to the prying eyes of the others. He walked into his room, plopping himself down on the bed. After a few minutes, Clint snatched his phone and checked the messages. He played the voicemail and, hearing Natasha, became worried. Then he noticed the text. Seeing his kids were in trouble, Clint ran to the lab. “Natasha attacked the base! Laura…”

Steve interrupted, “Slow down.”

“I think Laura is dead and Nat is holding my kids hostage! We gotta get over there!” Clint yelled.

“No,” Tony said, “we almost have Natasha. If we bring her back, she won’t have killed your wife.”

Clint’s mind was clouded by the thought of his kids in danger. “I’m going to Wakanda, with or without you.”

“So...Wakanda. That’s where you’re hiding out?” Tony stalled.

Steve shot Tony a nasty look as he said, “go, Clint. We’ll find Nat.” And Clint sprinted to the Quinjet.

When Clint was gone, Steve said, “so, you know where we’re hiding out. What are you gonna do about it?”

“Oh. You mean once this fiasco is over? Well, it would be fun to expose you guys...but I’ll hold my tongue.”

“Thank you,” Steve said, grateful for Tony’s humanity. They continued the search for Black Widow.


	8. A New Perspective

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Caution: smut

Natasha arrived at her new headquarters - the KGB. As she was cleared for entry, she noticed James standing at a far corner watching everything going on in the front lobby of the Kremlin. She approached him saying, “I didn’t know you were assigned to this detail.”

James wasn’t one for saying much but he responded, “I look forward to working with you.”

A man moved towards her cautiously, greeting her, “Hello, Natalia,” but as he said those words, a burst of pain shot through her head, and she winced. The man continued, “Follow me to your quarters.”

She followed behind him, looking back to see the Winter Soldier staring back at her. The man led her to a small cell closed off by a large metal door and surrounded by one-way mirrors. The man informed, “there is a debriefing tonight at 10. We will discuss the next steps for you.” She looked at the time, 6:02 p.m. “Feel free to stretch your legs before then. The meetings can get lengthy.” She entered her room, looking around and knowing that the walls literally do have ears...and eyes. 

She was contemplating how she might pass the time when James stepped in. “Are you free?” he asked.

“Until 10,” she said, wondering what he was up to.

“Come with me. I have something for you,” he looked at the windows.

She walked over to him tentatively. “Okay.”

“Come on,” he lured her down various halls until they reached a room removed from anyone else. 

“What is this about?” she wondered.

He mentioned, “I want to...try something.”

Before she could inquire what he was talking about, he grabbed her waist and pulled her body close to his, pressing his lips against hers. She wanted to resist, knowing what they were doing was wrong, but she was unable. Everything felt too right for her to do anything about it. He unzipped her jumpsuit, setting her body free. She tugged at his jacket, desperate to feel the heat of his body against her. He pulled her jumpsuit off of her, exposing her. She then ripped off his jacket and moved her fingers down to his pants, feeling his arousal with their lips still locked. He pulled down his pants, his erection pulsing.

Getting onto her knees, Natasha allowed his member into her mouth. He thrusted his hips, making his member go as far as it could. He wanted to be inside her, more than anything. Finally, his need became too great and he grabbed her, putting her on a table. She wrapped her legs around his neck. His tip was hovering at her opening. “Please, James. Please. I want you inside me,” she begged impatiently. He pushed his staff into her. She moved her hips to the rhythm of his thrusts. He went deeper and deeper until he couldn’t go any deeper. She gripped the table, trying to contain her moans and whines. 

James moved his metal arm up her body, leaving a trail of goosebumps in its wake. He tried to shush her cries by placing his hand over her mouth. She grabbed him, pulling him closer to her, wanting him to always be there. He opened his mouth as he began to climax in her. When she came, she left claw marks on his arm, drawing blood. Joy and satisfaction ran through their veins as he continued to fill her up. He pulled out and redressed as she lay on the table, amazed by what had happened.

Natasha stood and watched James as he slipped his arms into his jacket. She slowly put on her jumpsuit. She wanted more of that feeling that ran from her head to her toes, the feeling that led her to claw James, the feeling that felt so...good. They looked into each other’s eyes, but knew that they had to leave else they would create suspicion. She allowed herself a smile, not a smug smirk nor a devious grin, but a genuine smile.

Natasha looked at a small clock on the wall. It read 7:55. “I still have 2 hours to kill,” she commented.

“They must think we’re up to something,” he said.

“Let them think what they want, James. I want to be with you.”

“I like you when you’re like this.”

“Like what?” she asked, bewildered.

“When you act rebellious like that.”

She crossed her arms stubbornly. She claimed, “I am not being rebellious. I just...want you.”

“I want you too.” he thought for a moment before saying, “I know where we can go.”

He held her hand, leading her to an all but abandoned section of the kremlin. The section was under repair but the recent economic recession forced them to stop maintenance. She followed him up a stairwell that seemed to go up for an eternity. When they made it to the top, he pulled open a tarp that kept the wind out. He climbed out onto the onion domes and she trailed him vigilantly.

James sat at the very edge of one of the domes, so close to falling. She sat beside him, using their height from the pavement as an excuse to hold onto him. “Why are we here?” she asked.

“I think it is supposed to be romantic,” he hinted.

“I don’t see the appeal…” she paused, “although, the city does look...different from up here.”

“A good different?” 

“I’m unsure.” Natasha stared out at the city lights, watching as people went about their business. Another foreign feeling flooded her - serenity. She felt calm for the first time in a while. Her thoughts quieted from their normal tsunami state, leaving her drifting in the crisp Russian breeze. Her eyes closed and her head fell onto James’ shoulder. James, noticing she had fallen asleep, carried her inside - not wanting her to slip off the domes. He took her to another empty room and laid her on the floor.

The cold concrete floor pressed against Natasha’s cheek. Opening her eyes, her guard went up. She hopped onto her feet and looked around. As she saw Bucky, sitting on a counter, she felt at ease but not entirely. “What time is it?” she pondered.

“9:50,” he replied.

“I have to go,” she rubbed her head, forgetting the last few hours. “How did I get here?”

“I carried you. We were on the onion domes, remember?”

“Yeah,” she cast her eyes downward embarrassedly. “Are you going to the meeting?”

"Yes, I'll take you there," but before he could start leading her to the debriefing, she ran out of the room. He stuck close behind her, making sure she didn't get lost.

When Natasha reached the conference room, the time was 10:02. Natasha slipped into the room, sitting in a chair opposite the man who greeted her. After a minute or so, Bucky marched into the room. A much larger, angrier man stood in the corner and said, “you’re late.”

“Sorry,” she said, “I got a little lost.”

Bucky remained silent as the man said, “Regardless of why you were late, we wish to share our goals. We have plans for you two.”

“What kind of plans?” she inquired.

The man faced away from Natasha, a cigar between his lips. “We wish to use your and Sergeant Barnes’ genetic code to create a new super soldier.”


	9. The Child

Natasha felt her face heating up as she sat in the conference room. She glanced over to Bucky who remained emotionless. Suddenly, she came to the realization that he knew about this plan. He was trying to get close to her so she was more likely to fulfill the plan willingly. Even if she said no, they would force her. Besides, her indoctrination prevented her from going against them. Bucky was just trying to make her more comfortable.

“How do you plan on doing that Sergeant-“ she stopped.

“Captain Rykov,” he introduced himself. “I doubt I can explain it better than the scientist in the room,” he gestured towards a man in a white lab coat.

The man explained, “We will extract your DNA and then Sergeant Barnes’ DNA. We will then insert the two codes into different slots of a machine that essentially will create a child from the two sequences. We will genetically create a meiosis phase between the cells..” he trailed off.

“Let’s not bore her with the technicals,” Rykov said.

Her eyes were fixed upon the man. Finally, she cast her eyes down. “When?”

“Right now,” Rykov ordered.

A guard pushed Bucky into the chair beside Natasha. The scientist pulled out two sets of needles, and he extracted blood from both specimens. He then proceeded to swab their cheeks. Lastly, the man took a strand of hair from each. Putting all of the samples in his briefcase, the man exited the room, followed by a guard.

“The creation should take about a week,” Rykov said as he left the room.

Natasha and Bucky sat in the room, alone but together. “You knew…” she said, looking away from him.

“Yes I did.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked.

“I was ordered not to.”

“And you’re all about orders, aren’t you Sergeant Barnes. The epitome of a good soldier,” she stormed out.

Natasha threw herself onto her bed. Since her room was a very fortified cell and she was under constant surveillance, her hands no longer needed to be cuffed to the bed. Her mind roamed from one thought to the next. She thought about Bucky, the child the scientists were creating and her feelings. She wasn’t too sure what to do about her emotions. Should she bottle them up or let them go?

Eventually she fell asleep, allowing her mind to settle but not for long as she woke up a mere 4 hours later. She walked over to one of the mirrors, checking her hair and trying to see the people behind it. Natasha looked at her hands. She saw blood dripping from her palms and she realized she had dug her nails into her hands as she slept. 

For the next week, Natasha trained with Bucky for her mission of taking down the Avengers. She sat on a bench as the pair rested between their bouts. Rykov walked urgently into the room. “The agent is ready,” he spoke of the child. Bucky followed Rykov, Natasha jogging to keep up with their strides. They stopped before a large, locked up and well-guarded room. “This is it,” Rykov told. “The agent is about to be released. Do you have any possible weapons on you?”

Natasha shook her head as Bucky looked at his arm. “Oh. We’ll have to get rid of that,” Rykov nodded towards Bucky’s arm.

Bucky held his arm to his chest, an offended look on his face.

“It was a joke,” Rykov said. Both agents looked confused at his remark. Rykov gestured for them to enter the room. 

Natasha walked into the room, observing a large pod with mist seeping from its nooks and crannies. The room was insulated with white foam and no furniture was found anywhere. Directly across from the pod was a window which shielded a handful of scientists from the cold of the room.

Rykov signaled for the men to hit the release on the pod. As they did, the mist filled the room, blinding them. Natasha could faintly distinguish the figure of a little girl, falling to the ground. Rykov approached the girl tentatively. He pulled her to her feet and dragged her over to the agents. Natasha stared at the girl, noticing her short red hair and blue eyes. “We should start her training today. We wouldn’t want her to get into the habit of being complacent,” Rykov said, snapping Natasha out of her trance.

“Of course,” she replied. Natasha grabbed the girl by the arm and began to lead her to the sparring room. 

When they arrived, Bucky, “do you want to instruct her first or should I?”

“I got it.” Natasha taught the girl the proper fighting stance. She was a quick learner...much like herself. Natasha then invited the girl to try and fight her. The girl threw a punch, but Natasha threw her to the ground. Natasha held the girl’s arm as she pulled her fist back, ready to strike her. Suddenly, Natasha’s vision blacked out, and when she regained her sight, she saw a group of people standing around her, weapons drawn. She identified two of the people as being Steve Rogers and Clint Barton.


	10. Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey Stuff

Natasha paced through the halls, not straying far from the hostages. She walked closer to the cryogenic chamber that housed Bucky. Knowing he was inside, she tried to keep her distance but was drawn closer and closer, dragging her nails along the wall as her hips swayed with each step. 

She stopped mid-step. Looking behind her, she identified Clint at the end of the hallway. He spoke not a word, yet Natasha knew he was calling her over. She strode confidently towards him, noticing his every move and predicting what he was going to do next.

Clint fixed his eyes upon the assassin, but, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a pool of blood on the hardwood floor. “Let them go,” he ordered when Natasha stood two arms length from him.

“I will...once you’re dead.”

“I surrender,” he said, dropping his bow and quiver to the floor. He kicked both items over to her, showing he was not going to fight her. 

“That was easy. Have I found a weakness, agent?” she scoffed.

He stared at her. She looked the same as when she was sent back. It was almost as if nothing had happened, and this was the normal Natasha. He couldn’t help but notice that her eyes were different, though. Her once bright blue eyes, filled with joy and passion, now faded to grey from the darkness and loss she has seen. Breaking the silence, Clint threatened, “this is my family you’re messing with. I want you to know that. And when you mess with my family, you mess with me. And you don’t want to mess with me because I will win...I guarantee you that I will always win.”

She cocked her head, “You’re wrong, Barton. You will lose spectacularly.” 

She jumped off the wall, smashing her knee into Clint’s face. He retaliated, throwing punches to no avail. She knocked him to the floor and climbed onto him, grabbing his bow from the ground. She struck him with the bow. She paused, wondering why he wasn’t resisting. “What? Don’t want to hit a girl?” she asked.

“I’m not gonna fight you, Nat. I can’t,” he spat blood.

“Suit yourself.” She continued pummeling the archer, laughing with every hit. Eventually, she threw the bow down that hall and proceeded to punch him. Finally, she stopped, panting lightly. 

“Can I tell you something?” he asked.

“Are we friends now?” she inquired sarcastically. “I’m listening.”

“You’re pulling your punches.”

Natasha became infuriated. She grabbed her gun from its holster - a .357 revolver. She emptied all of the bullets but one and, spinning the barrel, she held it to Clint’s temple. “Russian roulette. How fitting,” he remarked.

She pulled the trigger once, he flinched but nothing happened. A second time...nothing. A third, a fourth. “There’s only one shot left. Any last words?”

“I don’t think this is how the game works.”

“And? I was sent to kill you and I intend to do that,” the cold barrel of the gun felt like knives against his skin. Her finger tightened, and, suddenly, she disappeared, leaving Clint on the floor. He laid on there, confused. 

Laura walked out of a room saying, “Hey hon’. What’re you doing on the floor?”

“I don’t know.” He stood, brushing off the dust and dirt from his clothes. He kissed Laura on the cheek and proceeded to the Quinjet. 

Checking his phone, Clint noticed a text from Steve that read, “We have Natasha. Get over here.”

At the compound, Natasha stood, holding the wrist of the little girl. Her arm was drawn back as she was ready to punch the girl. Steve approached her slowly, cautiously. She stood, trying to comprehend the events that had just occurred. Steve snatched the little girl from Natasha’s grasp and he jumped away from the spy. “Natasha?” Tony said. Her eyes remained fixated on the wall, though the image she saw was a recapitulation of everything leading up to that point. Suddenly, she collapsed onto the floor and Wanda, recently awoken from her slumber, levitated handcuffs over to the assassin and locked them on her wrists.

As Clint ran into the compound, he was greeted by Tony. Clint asked, “you have her?”

“That’s what we said, wasn’t it?”

“How is she?” Clint stopped.

“Russian as ever,” Tony told, “there was something strange, though.”

“What?” Clint ran through the possibilities of what Tony could mean by ‘strange.’

“There was a child with her...a little girl. We’re not sure who she is, but I’m running tests right now.” 

Clint pondered what this could mean. Did they alter time and space forever? That would certainly be a bad predicament.


End file.
